SKS vs Ruger Mini 30?

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sailor723

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Sorry if this is the wrong forum but I'm not sure where exactly this question belongs.

So here goes.....

When it comes to a .30 carbine for range use (paper punching and steel gong shooting at 100yds) does the Ruger Mini 30 offer any major advantages over a SKS for all the extra $$? (something like $700 (EE used) vs $200 or so by my calculations)
 
Well I've never shot a Mini 30 however both my SKSs are very accurate at 100 yards right out of the box
 
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Some cursory reading on the Mini 30 found problems with light primer strikes with surplus ammo, due to hard primers. This combined with being a lot more difficult to clean would steer me away from the mini 30, unless you want to spend extra dollars on non-corrosive.

Accuracy should be a wash from all reports, but I haven't owned the mini 30 personally.

Save a wack o' cash: Get an SKS.
 
The mini 30 suffers from accuracy problems after the first 8-12 shots, the accuracy staggeringly in fact, however before the barrel gets that hot, the accuracy is better than an SKS.

So I'd stick with an SKS any day.
 
no brainer, sks all the way, i dont own a mini 30 but i have an sks and mosin, for the price you cant beat it. You want to shoot cheap surplus, sks, that gun was designed for that. Mini 30, feed it top o the line brass and pay more for the same result. IMHO
 
OK, so here is another question. I don't mind cleaning guns but I don't always want to do it the second I get home so I'm probably going to shoot commercial non corrosive most of the time. I'm also not sure I want to get into the whole brake cleaner/soaking in mineral spirits/boiling water/get every crevice/de-cosmolining thing. Does anyone sell (at a premium obviously) SKS's that are cleaned/wood buffed up/looking like new/ready to go right out of the box?
 
Don't think I've seen clean ones for sale other than a private sale but cleaning them really isn't all that bad I use windex on everything followed my hot water from the first clean
 
the one I just bought from westrifle had very little cosmoline on it at all and its beautiful. It was so nice I just ordered a mosin from them as well.
 
sailor723 said:
OK, so here is another question. I don't mind cleaning guns but I don't always want to do it the second I get home so I'm probably going to shoot commercial non corrosive most of the time. I'm also not sure I want to get into the whole brake cleaner/soaking in mineral spirits/boiling water/get every crevice/de-cosmolining thing. Does anyone sell (at a premium obviously) SKS's that are cleaned/wood buffed up/looking like new/ready to go right out of the box?
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Corwin Arms.

They have a light oil on them, but not cosmoline. Just need a quick wipe down and cleaning, no more than you would need to clean any new rifle out of the box.
 
sailor723 said:
OK, so here is another question. I don't mind cleaning guns but I don't always want to do it the second I get home so I'm probably going to shoot commercial non corrosive most of the time. I'm also not sure I want to get into the whole brake cleaner/soaking in mineral spirits/boiling water/get every crevice/de-cosmolining thing. Does anyone sell (at a premium obviously) SKS's that are cleaned/wood buffed up/looking like new/ready to go right out of the box?
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I use paint thinner and just strip the rifle then wash every part in a container of paint thinner, followed by the stock. Takes about 15 mins and really isn't that hard to do. Then I lube the bore and any other parts that need lube and you are good to shoot.
 
wmd said:
the one I just bought from westrifle had very little cosmoline on it at all and its beautiful. It was so nice I just ordered a mosin from them as well.
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Me too. Mine was covered, and I mean covered, in what looked and smelled like motor oil. I just wiped off the excess, and started shooting!
 
a little linseed oil on the inside part of the wood is the first thing i do. i had a 10/22 stock swell up like a whale because of a little rain.
boiling water may be good cosmo cleaner too.
 
The way I see it, the extra initial effort in cleaning an SKS packed in cosmoline and subsequent post-shooting cleanings is definitely worth the price difference if you went with the Mini 30. For me, the appeal of 7.62x39 is the cheap surplus ammo.

Slightly off topic: I paid for a Ruger Scout that I'm still waiting to be delivered; I wanted to downsize my collection and bought into the "one rifle" marketing campaign. Thanks for reminding me why I love my SKS and why I shouldn't sell it.
 
I have both, both are great rifles. Certainly the SKS is less picky about ammo; I typically use Barnaul (steel case) in the Mini. For the SKS i use non corrosive Norinco, as I get a lot of light primer strikes in the Mini with the Norinco. As far as ease of cleaning and take down, I prefer the Mini...Since it actually goes back together nicely and is Stainless. :D With my SKS, the trigger group is always a pain to get back in place. I usually take the Mini-30 out before the SKS, to me it's better balanced, shorter, nicer handling, etc..That said, If it comes down to 1000$ Mini vs $200 SKS I pick the SKS. If it comes down to a 6-700$ used 581 series Mini vs SKS....I'd take the Mini 30.

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